French Camp VA facility on hold

STOCKTON - The long-sought-after project to build an expanded outpatient clinic and nursing home for veterans outside Stockton won't be built until there is the funding to pay for it.

Zachary K. Johnson

STOCKTON - The long-sought-after project to build an expanded outpatient clinic and nursing home for veterans outside Stockton won't be built until there is the funding to pay for it.

It's part of a line of projects for veterans waiting for funding. It's unclear where in the line the French Camp project is.

But the line appears to be long.

"There is probably close to $6 billion of unfunded need at the VA," said Lisa Freeman, the director of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System. "Our project is competing with all those other projects."

Freeman came to Tuesday's meeting of the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors to talk about the VA's plans. Bringing expanded health care to the San Joaquin Valley has been a priority of county officials for a decade. A large group of veterans came to the meeting, too, to implore both the board and Freeman to do what they could to speed the project.

For veterans in Stockton and up into the foothills, the French Camp clinic would mean the possibility to get medical care that currently can require taking a trip to Livermore or as far as Palo Alto.

Once the design is complete, it's expected to take three years to build the facility, according to the VA.

The VAPAHCS is the segment of the veterans' health system that includes San Joaquin County. The growing need in the Valley was one of the aspects considered as the health care system looked to spread out services to different parts of the region.

All told, the project costs $368 million and has many parts, Freeman told the board. In French Camp, it includes a 150,000-square-foot outpatient clinic and an equally large nursing home. There are other facets of the project, including the construction of a new clinic in Fremont.

The county's congressional contingent has been pushing for funding to build the French Camp facilities from both sides of the aisle.

"(Rep. Jerry McNerney, D-Stockton,) will do everything he can at the federal level to get that done as quickly as possible," said Lauren Smith, McNerney's spokeswoman. "He wants to be sure that facility is opened and that the veterans can get the care they need close to home."

County officials have been asking the VA and local representatives in Congress to give the French Camp clinic priority over the one proposed for Fremont. Currently, they are being considered together.

Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Turlock, echoed the county's proposal in a letter to the VA in Washington dated July 18. "While serving veterans in Fremont is important, its proximity to the facilities in Palo Alto means that seeking care is less of a burden than it is for those in the Valley. By dividing the projects, the VA may be able to start construction at the French Camp site sooner."

Freeman said she thought the project should remain together while seeking funding to finish the design. "I don't think it would delay anything to include Fremont." And she thought it would be possible to stagger construction of the individual pieces to move the French Camp clinic first when it comes time to build. But the facilities are operationally connected, and the possibility of too long a gap between components would be a concern, she said.

When board Chairman Ken Vogel asked Freeman what could be done to speed the project, she said the more veterans who write letters and make their opinions known, the better.